Medicine and dentistry partners

Providing the highest quality care to patients. Leading research and training in medicine and health. Learn more about our partners in the South West.

Information about the partners we work with at the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry.

Plymouth Community Healthcare

Plymouth Community Healthcare (PCH)
provides community, physical and mental healthcare for around 270,000 people in
Plymouth as well as some specialist services for those living in Devon and
Cornwall.

PCH is a Community Interest Company and is
an independent health services provider separate to the GP-led commissioning
organisations. We work as part of the wider NHS family in a similar way to GPs,
dentists and pharmacies.

Plymouth Community Healthcare is committed
to fairness and equity and values diversity in all aspects of its work as a
provider of healthcare services and as an employer of people. We constantly
strive to ensure services are fully inclusive and accessible, meet the health
needs of the local community and seek to build a workforce that is
representative of the community it serves.

We work together with others to help the
local population to stay physically and mentally well, to get better when they
are ill, and to remain as independent as they can until the end of their lives.

The Horizon Centre, an exciting
innovation, education and research facility based at Torbay Hospital is one of
just five flagship NHS Centres for Innovation and Training. Serving the NHS
workforce, the aim of the centre is to provide a state-of-the-art environment
where people can explore new ideas, learn new techniques and observe and
reflect on clinical practice together.

Investment in innovation, education and
research is key to improving the delivery and quality of patient care. The
Horizon Centre at Torbay Hospital provides a local, regional and national
‘Centre of Excellence’ where this can take place.

The centre caters for a myriad of
educational activities. From highly complex clinical procedures to the
base-line skills required by the NHS workforce, the centre provides an
environment where learning can thrive.

Areas of current specialist educational expertise
include elective care, ophthalmology, ENT and endoscopy.

Peninsula Postgraduate Medical Education
is responsible for the commissioning and quality assurance of postgraduate
medical education and training across Devon and Cornwall. It provides support
for GP Training, Foundation Training, Core Training and Specialty Training for
all trainees within the Peninsula. Health Education South West is part of Health Education England and under
the direction of the Postgraduate Dean, Professor Martin Beaman.

Our vision is to promote the delivery of
high‑quality patient care through the provision of a highly skilled medical
workforce.

The aim is for the medical workforce to be
skilled in all aspects of patient care and be equipped to develop and modify
their knowledge and skills in line with the changing needs of the service in
the future. This means that all doctors completing training within the south
west will be fit to practise, fit for purpose and able to adapt in an ever
changing health system.

We are particularly proud of our working
arrangements with Plymouth University Peninsula School of Medicine and the
Foundation Postgraduate School here in the Peninsula. We have consistently been
ranked highly in General Medical Council (GMC) surveys.

Our Quality Team is responsible for the
quality management of all training programmes and posts within the South West
Peninsula. The purpose of quality management is to ensure that each training
programme curriculum is being delivered to all trainees, in accordance with
standards developed and quality assured by the regulator, the General Medical
Council (GMC).

In order to ensure these standards of
postgraduate medical education and training throughout the United Kingdom, the
GMC has published “The Trainee Doctor” (GMC, 2011), providing a
framework and a set of standards that we must adhere to, and be able to demonstrate
on an annual basis.

Throughout the quality management process
we work with various bodies, including trainees and local providers, to ensure
that each trainee receives the necessary support, guidance and training to aid
their personal and professional development.

Through these processes we aim to ensure
the provision of a highly trained and skilled medical workforce for the
patients of tomorrow.

Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise CIC

Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise (PDSE)
is a Community Interest Company (CIC) which is responsible for the dental
clinical facilities for the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry. The company ensures the clinical education and training of
dental students is of the highest standards, and by doing so, provides a dental
service to local communities.

CICs are limited companies with special
additional features, created to conduct business or other activity, for
community benefit and not for private advantage. Registration of a CIC has to
be approved by the regulator who also has a continuing monitoring and
enforcement role.

Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise CIC has
a community ethos and is driven by the principles of good corporate governance
embracing integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness and honesty.

Our commitments are:

Outstanding clinical education

Strong social and community engagement

World class research

Partnership is at the heart of what we do
with:

Our students

The Dental Community Engagement Team

The NHS

The University

Communities and other partners throughout Devon and Cornwall

We are here to:

Drive innovation in medical and dental education

Support our NHS partners in improving healthcare in Devon and Cornwall

Generate and use research for the benefit of patients

Peninsula
Dental Social Enterprise CIC has strong links to other social enterprises, and
to NHS provision in Devon and Cornwall to ensure the activities complement and
enhance local health services. Partnerships with the local NHS to drive
innovation in education and healthcare are paramount to our success. We ensure
these benefits are enjoyed by local communities through our commitment to
social and professional engagement.

South West Cardiothoracic Centre

Cardiac services at Derriford Hospital are provided in the purpose-built South West Cardiothoracic Centre within the Terence Lewis Building, a state-of-the-art centre opened in June 2007. Using the latest techniques and advanced technology the Centre offers the full range of adult cardiac surgery other than transplantation. Since the Centre opened results have been consistently excellent and are amongst the best in the country. The Centre is considered to be one of the leading experts in bypass, valve, and aortic surgery. The hospital is currently the UK teaching centre for both atrial fibrillation ablation (ultrasound) and endoscopic vein harvesting.

The British Antarctic Survey Medical Unit

The British Antarctic Survey, part of the Natural Environment Research Council, is responsible for the UK’s scientific research in Antarctica. The survey’s medical unit (BASMU) is based at the Trust’s site within Derriford Hospital. The presence of BASMU within the Trust helps to support medical research on new and ongoing research projects appropriate to Antarctic Station crews. The proximity of BASMU has also facilitated the development of a Master of Science in Remote Healthcare qualification that is focused on clinical responsibility and research and is awarded by Plymouth University.

The NHS South West Dental Postgraduate
Department is a multi-professional organisation providing education and
training for the dental team, dentists and dental care professionals (dental
therapists, hygienists, nurses and technicians), across the South West of England
on behalf of Heath Education England.

The deanery provides
the following services to over 7,000 dental professionals and NHS
organisations:

Continuing Professional Development for the dental team, dentists and
dental care professionals (CPDs)

Additional duties training for dental nurses

Management of Dental Vocational Training by assessment

Management, advice and support for dentists in difficulty

Retaining and returning of the dental workforce

Dental workforce planning data

Advice to four NHS Area Teams, Dental Local Professional Networks and 12
local dental committees on dental matters

Support to Practitioner Advice and Support Service operated by the 12
Local Dental Committees in the South West

National advice and policy development for dentistry in England

Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust

Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust is the largest
hospital in the south west peninsula and the designated major trauma centre for
the area.

Our geography gives us a secondary care catchment
population of 450,000 with a wider peninsula population of almost 2,000,000
people who can access our specialist services. The population is characterised
by its diversity – the rural and the urban, the wealthy and pockets of
deprivation, and wide variance in health and life expectancy. The proportion of
our population aged 85 or over is growing ahead of the national average by
approximately ten years, giving Plymouth the opportunity to innovate on behalf the
nation in services for the elderly.

We work within a network of other hospitals to
offer a range of specialist services:

Kidney transplant

Pancreatic cancer surgery

Neurosurgery

Cardiothoracic surgery

Bone marrow transplant

Upper Gastro-intestinal surgery

Hepatobiliary surgery

Neonatal intensive care and high risk obstetrics

Plastic surgery

Liver transplant evaluation

Stereotactic radiosurgery

At Derriford Hospital, we offer the widest range of
hospital-based services in the peninsula. What sets our Trust apart from the
majority of acute hospital trusts is both the scope and scale of the services
we offer on one site.

We have over 6,000 staff including one of the largest
military units attached to any hospital in the country.

The Trust
performs well against a number of key NHS indicators. For instance, The Dr Foster Hospital
Guide 2013 shows we have a survival rate which is approximately twelve percent better than
expected, making Plymouth one of the best hospital trusts in the UK. We have won and
been short-listed for numerous awards, and won a national patient safety award in
recognition of its achievements in reducing healthcare associated infections.

Building an
International Reputation for Research and Development

Plymouth’s clinical research continues to have an
excellent reputation locally, nationally and is building internationally. We
were identified as the second highest 'Large Trust' recruiter to NIHR portfolio
trials in the Guardian Trust research activity league tables 2013, reflecting
our 591 active studies, of which 232 are currently recruiting, with 141 of
these having opened in 2013/14.

In excess of 4,600 patients were recruited to
clinical trials during 2013/14 and we remain the highest recruiter to interventional
trials in the south west peninsula. Our
delivery is supported by more than £2million funding from the National Institute for
Health Research (NIHR) which is used to support research staff, facilities and
training to provide the capacity to underpin and grow research.

The growth of our clinical trials and research has
been significant over the past five years, with aspirations to further increase
the number of patients recruited to trials by fifty percent over the next five years and,
in future, to be able to offer all patients the opportunity to take part in a
research project.

The research environment continues to change and,
in line with the Department of Health’s Corporate Plan for 2013/14, there is
the drive for people to live better and for longer. This mantra can only be delivered through
research, with one of the key areas for improvement being the treatment and
care of people with dementia.

Dementia research is a key area for growth at
Plymouth Hospitals, in support of the government remit for the UK to improve
‘treatment and care of people with dementia, to be among the best in Europe
through early diagnosis, better research and better support’. Plymouth is amongst one of the few south west
centres successfully delivering research projects and a growing portfolio, for
patients with Alzheimers, supporting the area’s older stable population.

This agenda is very much in line with the South
West Academic Health Science Network (AHSN) key activity areas, and Plymouth
will be working with the network, to deliver an integrated care pathway for
the:

Frail elderly and people suffering from dementia

Long term conditions

COPD

Cancer

Diabetes

Cardio-vascular
problems

Stroke care

We continue, in partnership with Exeter, Truro,
Torbay and North Devon hospitals, to be a Quintiles Peninsula Prime site for
commercial research and are integral to delivering the Peninsula’s prime site
targets for number of trials set up and patient recruitment. Plymouth’s leading practice in research and development
pathways for the delivery of research continues to be used as an example of
best practice across the peninsula.

GPs as Partners

The Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry has close working
relationships with general practice with over 64 practices in Cornwall,
Plymouth, Torbay and other areas in our region providing placements for our
students. This ensures students gain experience of general practice in
rural, inner city and suburban settings and are able to develop their skills as
they progress throughout the programme.

General Practice provides
exciting and crucial opportunities for Medical and Physician Associate students
to understand more about managing chronic, complex and acute medicine in the
community, as well as understanding the role and expertise of the GP and the
range of health care team members. Experiences in General Practice
placements include meeting patients and families in the surgery and in their
homes, observing GPs and other health professionals at work (such as complex
needs matrons, pharmacists and practice nurses), conducting supervised
consultations and technical procedures and taking part in a range of healthcare
activities, from helping out at flu clinics to undertaking audits.

As well as providing
placements for students, many of our local GPs have additional educational
expertise and qualifications and deliver other teaching on our programmes:
facilitating Problem Based Learning sessions, delivering workshops and
plenaries and leading clinical reasoning sessions across a range of clinical
areas.

Students appreciate being
able to play an active role on their GP placements: ”Lots of opportunities
given to do different activities e.g. venepuncture, history taking,
observation, home visits, district nurse attachment.” “Other members of
staff at the practice are great - give helpful feedback, are patient and
friendly, ask us questions to test our knowledge, and seem genuinely interested
and excited about helping us learn/develop.” “Being able to see patients
separately, practise feedback to the GP with every patient and the opportunity
to suggest a diagnosis, investigations and management plans about some
patients.” “It allows us to experience what being a GP is like, but gives us
our independence and a chance to challenge ourselves."